Intel and AMD have joined forces to form a new advisory board with the aim of enhancing and unifying the x86 eco-system. The fight against Arm is intensifying.
Intel and AMD both have access to the x86 Instruction Set Architecture (ISA), which was first introduced in the late '70s with the 8086. AMD obtained a licence for making compatible chips, and the two companies have been in competition ever since. You don't have to be told that they've also not always gotten along.
The press release states: "As fierce competitors, Intel AMD share a long history of industry cooperation ...". This advisory group takes industry collaboration to a new level, for the benefit of all computing ecosystems and as a catalyst for innovation.
The main aims and objectives of the x86 eco-system advisory group are a bit nebulous. They sound like they all say the same thing in a variety of ways. The general jist seems to be greater compatibility and simplicity across x86 products.
Here are the full texts:
- Enhancing the choice and compatibility of hardware and software while accelerating the ability of customers to benefit from cutting-edge features.
- Intel and AMD have simplified architectural guidelines in order to improve software consistency and interfaces on x86 products.
- Enhanced integration of new capabilities in operating systems, frameworks, and applications.
The oddly collaborative announcement quotes both Intel and AMD CEOs.
Pat Gelsinger, Intel's chief executive officer, says that AMD and Intel "proudly stand together".
Lisa Su, AMD's vice president of marketing, says that AMD is "excited" to bring together the industry to provide direction for future architectural enhancements. She also hopes to extend the success of x86 into the future.
Other companies, such as Google Cloud, Broadcom and Oracle, have also signed on to support the group. Oh, and Epic CEO Tim Sweeney as well as Linux creator Linus Tovalds are 'luminaries" within the group.
You may be wondering what has happened in the last few years to make these historical enemies work together.
The emergence of Arm is a major concern for x86. Apple and other major tech companies would have stuck with x86 in the past, as there were few alternatives that were worth investing in. Arm was used in mobile phones around the world, but desktop, laptop and data centre markets were beyond reach.
Today, this has all changed. Apple has designed its own Arm-based CPUs, abandoning Intel and AMD. It does a great job. Google has its own line of Arm-based custom processors, called Axion.
Then there are the Arm chips from Qualcomm. The Snapdragon X Elite series and Plus series are trying to break Intel's stranglehold over the laptop market. These chips are likely to be used on desktops in some form or another.
Intel is always keen to downplay Arm's threat, claiming that x86 is as power efficient (and that's a valid claim) and that it's happy making the Arm chips that threatens its business. Intel sold its entire stake in Arm a few months ago.
Intel and AMD's collaboration is a good idea, even if the Arm threat is a big one.
This is because these two companies have a common ISA with the same compatibility, software, and standards. A little more teamwork could make the x86 Dream work?
Who knows if this group has any influence at all. Time will tell.
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